I found this course enjoyable and informative. It provided a foundation of internet communication which emphasized principles rather than technicalities, and provided differing perspectives on how technology is affecting communication.
The process of writing a blog was a new one for me, although I have posted many times on various message boards. However, the blog topics I felt did not resemble a traditional blog in the sense that there is a narrative and consistency from post to post. We seemed to jump from activity to activity with little references to narrative. Additionally, such a decentralized system of information meant that discourse involving many students was made more difficult. The restriction on posting multiple times on the same person’s blog also hindered this process. The highest comment total on any blog I saw was around 3, and the way the blogs are set up it’s not possible to see updates unless I specifically visit all the blogs and check the individual posts. However, we did learn quite a bit about what is involved in blogging, and how to go about doing it.
The readings were also interesting, for different ways. Personally, I felt the Postman piece was biased, and at times I disagreed with his conclusions (although I did not dismiss them). Wood and Smith gave a more balanced approached similar to what a college text book might contain, giving balanced space to each side of the arguments.
The only thing I would change is the discussion board format. Firstly, the alternating posting and replying made it difficult to maintain a narrative from week to week. Secondly, there was no unifying discussion topic or point that posters could focus on and maintain consistency. I believe this would have helped the discourse. Instead, the posts were not only split down the middle in two different texts, but also the posts often covered vastly different subjects. This resulted in a peppering of many different topics and subjects which happened to interest the students as it related to the readings.
I thoroughly enjoyed the course, and wish everyone well with their academics!
Warm Regards,
Aaron
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Wild Card - Introduction to Skype
A new piece of software that has recently impacted my online communication is skype. While I have used skype for years for use in business and socializing, it was only recently that I convinced my parents to actually install it. Since then, I have observed how they have gone from completely ignorant of how skype works to gradually adopt the behaviors of CMC and become comfortable communicating online.
My parents, although highly educated and smart, are resistant to learning to use new technologies. My dad's historical excuse has been "oh ill get it, I just want to wait until it drops in price". He has used this line for every new technology that has come out that I can remember. To solve this problem, I simply started buying my parents new gadgets as soon as they are available, thus placing them in the somewhat uncomfortable (for them) position of being in possession of a brand new technology. To date, the strategy hasn’t been all that successful. Most of the time the gadgets I purchase for them remain either unused or unopened. The ipod I bought my parents still has zero songs on it. As I live across the globe from my parents, it’s difficult for me to ease the transition for them by showing them how to use the new gadgets (although every time I do see them I catch them up as best I can).
After purchasing my parents a new laptop complete with web cam, they could no longer ignore my urgings and finally agreed to setup a skype date. The experience for them was revolutionary. They had never experienced video chat, and the ability to see who they were talking to was novel to them. I remember my mom said something like "I feel like I am in your home". This sentiment is exactly what Woods and Smith reference when they speak of the internet promoting interconnectedness, and how we construct our realities through technology.
At first, they were very clumsy in how they skyped. A typical user would schedule a meeting in advance, or failing that, send a quick chat message to ask if it was convenient to skype. My parents on the other hand, treated skype like a telephone. They just pressed "call". I remember being in the other room eating dinner and hearing the skype call come in. I had to explain to them that it was normal to send a chat message, and that skype was a program that was not always online. They seemed frustrated they could not skype when my computer was off (as if the telephone lines were down).
Eventually, they got the hang of the etiquette and use, and now I even witness my dad using the hotkeys for skype to maximize the screen (he was very proud of this). They now prefer to skype instead of a traditional phone call, and even if we find ourselves speaking on the phone, he will inevitably ask if we can skype instead. My parents now use skype beyond communicating with me, and now do it with many family members and friends.
The case of my parents mirrors the general trend occurring in society. Every year more people go online and become connected. The digital divide that currently exists and is covered in W&S ch. 8 will slowly recede as the cost to bring developing countries these technologies continues to drop. This week's chapter of Woods and Smith discusses how technologies become familiar, and borrowing from Plotnikoff "unremarkable". While I feel the novelty of this particular technology still remains, it certainly seems today that my parents could not imagine not using skype to communicate.
My parents, although highly educated and smart, are resistant to learning to use new technologies. My dad's historical excuse has been "oh ill get it, I just want to wait until it drops in price". He has used this line for every new technology that has come out that I can remember. To solve this problem, I simply started buying my parents new gadgets as soon as they are available, thus placing them in the somewhat uncomfortable (for them) position of being in possession of a brand new technology. To date, the strategy hasn’t been all that successful. Most of the time the gadgets I purchase for them remain either unused or unopened. The ipod I bought my parents still has zero songs on it. As I live across the globe from my parents, it’s difficult for me to ease the transition for them by showing them how to use the new gadgets (although every time I do see them I catch them up as best I can).
After purchasing my parents a new laptop complete with web cam, they could no longer ignore my urgings and finally agreed to setup a skype date. The experience for them was revolutionary. They had never experienced video chat, and the ability to see who they were talking to was novel to them. I remember my mom said something like "I feel like I am in your home". This sentiment is exactly what Woods and Smith reference when they speak of the internet promoting interconnectedness, and how we construct our realities through technology.
At first, they were very clumsy in how they skyped. A typical user would schedule a meeting in advance, or failing that, send a quick chat message to ask if it was convenient to skype. My parents on the other hand, treated skype like a telephone. They just pressed "call". I remember being in the other room eating dinner and hearing the skype call come in. I had to explain to them that it was normal to send a chat message, and that skype was a program that was not always online. They seemed frustrated they could not skype when my computer was off (as if the telephone lines were down).
Eventually, they got the hang of the etiquette and use, and now I even witness my dad using the hotkeys for skype to maximize the screen (he was very proud of this). They now prefer to skype instead of a traditional phone call, and even if we find ourselves speaking on the phone, he will inevitably ask if we can skype instead. My parents now use skype beyond communicating with me, and now do it with many family members and friends.
The case of my parents mirrors the general trend occurring in society. Every year more people go online and become connected. The digital divide that currently exists and is covered in W&S ch. 8 will slowly recede as the cost to bring developing countries these technologies continues to drop. This week's chapter of Woods and Smith discusses how technologies become familiar, and borrowing from Plotnikoff "unremarkable". While I feel the novelty of this particular technology still remains, it certainly seems today that my parents could not imagine not using skype to communicate.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Interviews
Mother in law age 61
My mother in law is what I would call a traditional person. She has a particular way of thinking, and a set of ways to which she is devoted. A working mother of three her entire life, she had no time or money for things such as advanced education, travel, or hobbies. As a result, she has not come to accept technology as easily as others her age. She in fact does not use the internet, or a computer, at all. I would characterize her as a borderline technophobe. Her resistance to technology includes the modern banking system. I asked her how she does her banking (expecting her to say she never does online banking), and to my surprise she indicated that she won’t even use the ATM! Instead, she gets into line every day to make deposits and withdrawals. When I asked why she doesn’t use an ATM, she said she didn’t know how to, and didn’t trust the technology.
In her own words, the internet, and (computer use) is something necessary to function and be productive in society, much like the typewriter was for her. As a retired elderly person, she is not required to learn or adapt to these technologies as her communication needs are being met without them.
Art dealer age 41
The second interview I conducted was with an old family friend who is an art dealer and happened to be in town this week. When I met her, it was immediately apparent that technology played an integral part in her life re business. She was tapping away at her blackberry constantly, keeping updated with the latest emails and correspondence with her clients. Before her flight landed, I received emails notifying me of her progress sent from her phone. She was clearly comfortable with technology and understood its uses and benefits to communication. However, interestingly enough there were some communication activities that she did not utilize technology to the fullest. She said she missed her kids (age 4 and 7) and wanted to see them, so I asked why she didn’t simply set a skype date with her laptop? Her eyes glazed and she simply said “yeah…I should do that”. It seemed that for social interaction, she still used traditional methods of communication, phone, face to face, but for business it was all email and internet. The idea of using technology to that degree (and having her kids use it as well), seemed a foreign idea.
Brother in law age 22
The third interview was with my brother in law, who is an art major, free spirit, bohemian type. His room is a collage of paints, sketches, canvas, brushes, an enormous desk, and an equally enormous yet pristine apple PC, placed prominently in a corner with the best view out his window. My brother in law is entirely comfortable with technology for both work and play, for business and social communication. Aside from the computer, there was an ipod dock setup as well as setup for him to pipe downloaded movies to his TV. Clearly, the internet and computer use has permeated nearly every aspect of his life. When I questioned him regarding how the internet has changed his life, he reacted with anxiety to the thought of what would happen if he lost the internet. I would place him diametrically opposite in characterization when compared to my mother in law.
Wood and Smith describe in Chapter 1 how many people can feel anxiety when using computers. My mother in law certainly qualifies as one of these. Opposite her is my brother in law, who expressed anxiety for precisely the opposite: losing access to the internet. Somewhere in the middle is the art dealer, who has adapted her life and business to the newer technologies, yet not fully embraced them on all levels.
Together, I feel these three interviews describe well three typical slices of society and how they most commonly interact with internet and computer use. It shows a gradual trend towards inclusion and permeation of technology that will eventually lead to more people like my brother in law. Like most technologies, the convenience of them once integrated into society is hard to let go, and may lead to anxiety if the loss of it becomes apparent. What if we all had to give up automobiles and go back to using horse drawn carts? I am sure most of us would express anxiety.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Joining an online community - Real Estate as a hobby
One of my adult passions has to been to invest and manage real estate, notably in the city in which I reside: Hong Kong. I decided for this assignment to become active in one of the online expat website’s forum related to buying, selling, investing, and managing real estate in the city.
Assimilation into the forum was fairly simple. I created an account and began posting and commenting on topics I found interesting or just had something to say. Most of the topics can be divided into two main areas: predicting the future, and asking advice. I tended to start first in the advice category, commenting on various posters’ questions concerning the buying process, tips to rent out their flat, how to deal with a bad tenant, and so on. As I became more comfortable with the forum, I started to explore posting in the “prediction” topics. These topics tended to be much more emotional and tense than the simple advice topics. I believe this was due to the fact that many of the posters were heavily invested, and their net worth was closely tied to the outcome of their prediction.
To me, it is very clear which posters are accepted, and which ones are ignored or discounted from the responses that are posted. Whether or not posters agree or disagree, the manner in which they do represents whether or not someone is accepted. An outright rejection, personal flaming or ignoring a post can mean that the poster is not accepted, while a cogent response (even an emotional one) which relates to the topic can indicate acceptance.
Disagreements could get nasty and personal on the forum, as the topics dealt with personal wealth and possibly vast sums of money. People don’t generally respond well when they are told they poorly invested hundreds of thousands of dollars. As a result, emotions tended to run high and flames and insults abounded. These disagreements typically either ended in compromise, a person withdrawing from the thread, or didn’t really end at all. The audience of this forum is somewhat more mature and educated than the average forum, so these arguments tended to resolve fairly quickly, but the anonymous nature of the internet tends to inflame rather than contain emotional outbursts.
The Wood and Smith reading from this week talks about how important the community is to an individual, be it real or virtual. One interesting aspect of this particular community is the fact that posters valued the anonymous ability to ask advice without fear of loaded advice or the responder having an agenda. Traditionally, many financial advisors who offer tips on property have a specific agenda, or are selling something. The online community solved this issue for the posters in a unique way.
The forum I joined contained people from across the city, content to discuss a highly specific topic, a commonly shared passion for real estate. This suggests that culture at large is continuing to use the internet as a source of knowledge, advice and community as opposed to traditional networks. If people are willing to debate serious financial topics in a forum that can determine long term wealth, is there anything people won’t discuss online?
Assimilation into the forum was fairly simple. I created an account and began posting and commenting on topics I found interesting or just had something to say. Most of the topics can be divided into two main areas: predicting the future, and asking advice. I tended to start first in the advice category, commenting on various posters’ questions concerning the buying process, tips to rent out their flat, how to deal with a bad tenant, and so on. As I became more comfortable with the forum, I started to explore posting in the “prediction” topics. These topics tended to be much more emotional and tense than the simple advice topics. I believe this was due to the fact that many of the posters were heavily invested, and their net worth was closely tied to the outcome of their prediction.
To me, it is very clear which posters are accepted, and which ones are ignored or discounted from the responses that are posted. Whether or not posters agree or disagree, the manner in which they do represents whether or not someone is accepted. An outright rejection, personal flaming or ignoring a post can mean that the poster is not accepted, while a cogent response (even an emotional one) which relates to the topic can indicate acceptance.
Disagreements could get nasty and personal on the forum, as the topics dealt with personal wealth and possibly vast sums of money. People don’t generally respond well when they are told they poorly invested hundreds of thousands of dollars. As a result, emotions tended to run high and flames and insults abounded. These disagreements typically either ended in compromise, a person withdrawing from the thread, or didn’t really end at all. The audience of this forum is somewhat more mature and educated than the average forum, so these arguments tended to resolve fairly quickly, but the anonymous nature of the internet tends to inflame rather than contain emotional outbursts.
The Wood and Smith reading from this week talks about how important the community is to an individual, be it real or virtual. One interesting aspect of this particular community is the fact that posters valued the anonymous ability to ask advice without fear of loaded advice or the responder having an agenda. Traditionally, many financial advisors who offer tips on property have a specific agenda, or are selling something. The online community solved this issue for the posters in a unique way.
The forum I joined contained people from across the city, content to discuss a highly specific topic, a commonly shared passion for real estate. This suggests that culture at large is continuing to use the internet as a source of knowledge, advice and community as opposed to traditional networks. If people are willing to debate serious financial topics in a forum that can determine long term wealth, is there anything people won’t discuss online?
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Emails and letters - Topic 4
I chose to compose an email to my wife, and a letter to my Grandma.
When choosing the two people, I had a difficult time thinking of someone I still communicate with through snail mail. I do send occasional letters to my grandma on her birthday and holidays and such, but I felt that using my grandma as an example was a tired cliche, and very likely many other students would choose the same. Alas, I was not able to find any other suitable choice. I have moved towards email to such a degree that I use it nearly exclusively.
Comparing the two letters
Both letters were to family members, and the content of both centered on updating what was going on in my life (and theirs at the time). However, there were stark differences between the two. The letter to my grandma took some time to conceive, mostly because I had to recall where exactly we left off. I would say that I speak to my grandma once every couple of weeks (on the phone), and receive updates from other family members perhaps once a week. My wife on the other hand I speak to many times per day through various channels. The biggest difference between the letters was the length. With my grandma, was there much more content that could be discussed, and I had much more to ask since the frequency of communication is much less. With my wife, I already keep fairly well abreast of what is going on in her life, and she does the same for mine, thus there was less content.
Another facet of the email to my wife that I found interesting was that I put far less thought into composing the email, even considering the reduced content. After examining why this was so, I came to the conclusion that I felt that I could just send another email at any moment should a thought occur to me. For the snail mail, this ease of communication did not exist, thus I made sure and gave extra thought to include all that I wanted to convey.
Wood and Smith note that a large part of the attraction of the internet is the ease in which people are able to instantly find others and have interesting conversations (p.102). This point is particularly salient because I felt that I can more easily stay in contact with my wife (above and beyond the fact that she is in closer proximity to me than my grandma) and that information flowed much more efficiently.
I think that culture at large will benefit greatly from the increase and ease of communication between people. We are living in an increasingly globalized world, and the fact that we can easily communicate as a global community enriches and educates all of us. Face to face and interpersonal communication still have their place and time, but these two modes are not mutually exclusive.
When choosing the two people, I had a difficult time thinking of someone I still communicate with through snail mail. I do send occasional letters to my grandma on her birthday and holidays and such, but I felt that using my grandma as an example was a tired cliche, and very likely many other students would choose the same. Alas, I was not able to find any other suitable choice. I have moved towards email to such a degree that I use it nearly exclusively.
Comparing the two letters
Both letters were to family members, and the content of both centered on updating what was going on in my life (and theirs at the time). However, there were stark differences between the two. The letter to my grandma took some time to conceive, mostly because I had to recall where exactly we left off. I would say that I speak to my grandma once every couple of weeks (on the phone), and receive updates from other family members perhaps once a week. My wife on the other hand I speak to many times per day through various channels. The biggest difference between the letters was the length. With my grandma, was there much more content that could be discussed, and I had much more to ask since the frequency of communication is much less. With my wife, I already keep fairly well abreast of what is going on in her life, and she does the same for mine, thus there was less content.
Another facet of the email to my wife that I found interesting was that I put far less thought into composing the email, even considering the reduced content. After examining why this was so, I came to the conclusion that I felt that I could just send another email at any moment should a thought occur to me. For the snail mail, this ease of communication did not exist, thus I made sure and gave extra thought to include all that I wanted to convey.
Wood and Smith note that a large part of the attraction of the internet is the ease in which people are able to instantly find others and have interesting conversations (p.102). This point is particularly salient because I felt that I can more easily stay in contact with my wife (above and beyond the fact that she is in closer proximity to me than my grandma) and that information flowed much more efficiently.
I think that culture at large will benefit greatly from the increase and ease of communication between people. We are living in an increasingly globalized world, and the fact that we can easily communicate as a global community enriches and educates all of us. Face to face and interpersonal communication still have their place and time, but these two modes are not mutually exclusive.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Musings on Facebook
I was never very enthusiastic about signing up for facebook. I was previously a part of a social networking site called Friendster, and I quickly learned the benefits and detriments of these sites through that experience. Social networking sites allow you efficient and widespread access to people’s daily lives. However, these sites expose users to an incredible amount of information, most of which (I feel) is unimportant or unrelated to the specific relationship. Eventually I relented to peer pressure and created a face book account. My own personal communication preferences generally tend towards phone calls and emails, rather than text messaging or online messaging. I am what you would call a low frequency user of facebook, I reluctantly log in for very short periods of time to check essential sections (like the inbox).
One of the most interesting areas of facebook is the photo section. It provides a quick and easy way to checkup on what’s going on in the lives of my friends. Additionally, the tagging system allows people to connect photos with facebook users. I normally am aware of what photos I am being tagged, and which ones I am not. Like most people, I am sensitive to how I am portrayed in public. If I do not like a photo of me, I will generally un tag it. Conversely, if there is a good photo and I am not tagged, I will add the tag if I wish to share it. The photo section of facebook is an ideal example of what is referred to as “telepresence” (Wood and Smith p.54). Not only does it provide additional sensory information, but the leveling of interactivity contributes to the feelings of connectedness.
I generally do not post general message or “shoutouts”, as I find this information boring and attention seeking. I mostly withhold the minute by minute posts, and do not generally share intimate, sensitive, or family only details. One of my facebook friends was going to give birth to twins, and one of the twins looked as If it wouldn’t survive. She posted every detail, every trial, and every tribulation of the ordeal on her facebook page. Through this emotional roller coaster her friends commiserated and gave her support. While I understand the need for a support system, I draw a line between a more intimate family oriented support system able of coping with difficult issues, to a more public inclusion of mostly acquaintances and school friends. I found myself wondering why she felt the need to constantly update us of every little progression to people who hardly knew her. When creating identities online, each of us uses the social network for possibly different purposes. Our intended purpose can affect what type of identity we form, and what information we consequently share. In Wood and Smith, the authors claim that “some people feel relationships formed online are more qualitative and real than those formed in real life” (p.78).
In culture at large, facebook, and other sites like it, have become a global cross cultural phenomenon. This continually expanding network as a byproduct of the internet has permeated our lives so fully that now that many feel it is required to participate in order to function within society. Increasingly it is becoming bizarre to encounter someone with no email address. The hilarious south park episode, “you have 0 friends” explores how the characters struggle with this permeation of social networking, and makes a funny yet spot on commentary on the identities, communication, and relationships formed through social networking sites.
One of the most interesting areas of facebook is the photo section. It provides a quick and easy way to checkup on what’s going on in the lives of my friends. Additionally, the tagging system allows people to connect photos with facebook users. I normally am aware of what photos I am being tagged, and which ones I am not. Like most people, I am sensitive to how I am portrayed in public. If I do not like a photo of me, I will generally un tag it. Conversely, if there is a good photo and I am not tagged, I will add the tag if I wish to share it. The photo section of facebook is an ideal example of what is referred to as “telepresence” (Wood and Smith p.54). Not only does it provide additional sensory information, but the leveling of interactivity contributes to the feelings of connectedness.
I generally do not post general message or “shoutouts”, as I find this information boring and attention seeking. I mostly withhold the minute by minute posts, and do not generally share intimate, sensitive, or family only details. One of my facebook friends was going to give birth to twins, and one of the twins looked as If it wouldn’t survive. She posted every detail, every trial, and every tribulation of the ordeal on her facebook page. Through this emotional roller coaster her friends commiserated and gave her support. While I understand the need for a support system, I draw a line between a more intimate family oriented support system able of coping with difficult issues, to a more public inclusion of mostly acquaintances and school friends. I found myself wondering why she felt the need to constantly update us of every little progression to people who hardly knew her. When creating identities online, each of us uses the social network for possibly different purposes. Our intended purpose can affect what type of identity we form, and what information we consequently share. In Wood and Smith, the authors claim that “some people feel relationships formed online are more qualitative and real than those formed in real life” (p.78).
In culture at large, facebook, and other sites like it, have become a global cross cultural phenomenon. This continually expanding network as a byproduct of the internet has permeated our lives so fully that now that many feel it is required to participate in order to function within society. Increasingly it is becoming bizarre to encounter someone with no email address. The hilarious south park episode, “you have 0 friends” explores how the characters struggle with this permeation of social networking, and makes a funny yet spot on commentary on the identities, communication, and relationships formed through social networking sites.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Wall E and Cybercommunication
The animated film Wall - E presents a humorous but poignant view of the future of earth and humanity. In this pseudo dsytopic portrayal the future, the earth has been polluted to such a degree as it has become a desolate wasteland no longer able to support life. Humanity is able to persist as a result of technological advances, existing in perpetuity upon a space vessel which provided all of their needs.
Technology in the film is portrayed as both a blessing and a bane to humanity. On one hand, the irresponsible use of technology was the cause of the pollution on earth, but on the other hand it was due to technology that humanity survived this calamity.
The characters in Wall E are intrinsically tied to technology, be they robots or humans. Three major relationship pairs explore how cybercommunication may develop in the future: human to human, captain to copilot, and Wall E to Eve.
The first relationship, human to human, has the most immediate application to our daily lives. The humans in Wall E are portrayed as fat, lazy, and generally coddled by the technology that surrounds them. They spend the majority of their time sitting in a hover chair, having all needs attended to by various robots. The outlet of nearly all communication is a computer screen, through which they learn, work, gossip, entertain themselves, and otherwise function. The implications for the future imply that we will increasingly rely on technology and computers to experience our lives virtually rather than physically.
The second relation explored is that of the captain and the copilot. The copilot, a machine that is essentially the artificial intelligence (brain) of the ship, controls and maintains the day to day goings on of the ship. The captain himself is generally unnecessary, and not involved in much decision making. At one point he remarks "let me do the announcements, it’s the one thing I get to do on the ship". This relationship explores the growing dependency/reliance on technology in order to run our daily lives. Even more so, it explores the control that this technology can exert over our lives. In the movie, the captain and copilot disagree on whether or not to return to earth. The copilot then takes drastic steps to conceal and subvert the protagonists’ efforts to communicate with the rest of the crew. The main characters fight back against the technology and eventually manage to toggle the ship to "manual control", symbolically and literally ending the dependence on technology. In the readings, Postman discusses a somewhat similar situation in which windmills become a locus for prostitutes in the middle ages, and the local authorities’ attempts to shut it down due to the harm it was causing (Postman p.27). Ultimately, these efforts failed as the economy had become too dependent on the mills to function.
The third relationship explored, between Wall E and Eve, has long term implications for how technology and cybercommunication will develop in the future. This relationship is unique in that it displays how technology ceases to become a medium of communication used by humans, and instead becomes an origin of communication by the technology itself. Messages are generated, sent and received without the participation or knowledge of humans. The implications of this relationship highlight the premise for how technology grows beyond our control. Postman speaks directly to this point when he refers to a “technopoly”, whereby society has become so integrated and reliant on technology to function that the technology itself overrides the traditional societal norms and exerts its own influence.
The portrayals of Wall E bear remarkable similarities to trends that are occurring in society at large. The immediate implications explored in the human to human interaction, whereby endless hours are spent in from of computer screens, experiencing life virtually rather than physically can be seen today. Computer literacy, internet penetration, and internet related activities are increasingly becoming necessary to function, (email, e banking, knowledge, work etc.). The second relationship, between captain and copilot, also bears resemblance to how pilots fly aircraft today. Most of the computation and calculation is left to computers, with the pilots on standby in case something severe occurs. Although we have clearly not reached the level of dependency seen in the film, many critical flight tasks such as landing, takeoff, and navigation are entirely automated via computers. The efficiency, exactitude, and removal of the possibility of human error present several advantages.
In summary, the film presents a multi dimensional approach to how technology and communication intertwine in a possible human future resulting in startling benefits or detriments depending on how the technology is utilized. The underlying message of the film is also clear: technology is here to stay; how we choose to interact and manage it will ultimately determine the future of how we communicate.
Technology in the film is portrayed as both a blessing and a bane to humanity. On one hand, the irresponsible use of technology was the cause of the pollution on earth, but on the other hand it was due to technology that humanity survived this calamity.
The characters in Wall E are intrinsically tied to technology, be they robots or humans. Three major relationship pairs explore how cybercommunication may develop in the future: human to human, captain to copilot, and Wall E to Eve.
The first relationship, human to human, has the most immediate application to our daily lives. The humans in Wall E are portrayed as fat, lazy, and generally coddled by the technology that surrounds them. They spend the majority of their time sitting in a hover chair, having all needs attended to by various robots. The outlet of nearly all communication is a computer screen, through which they learn, work, gossip, entertain themselves, and otherwise function. The implications for the future imply that we will increasingly rely on technology and computers to experience our lives virtually rather than physically.
The second relation explored is that of the captain and the copilot. The copilot, a machine that is essentially the artificial intelligence (brain) of the ship, controls and maintains the day to day goings on of the ship. The captain himself is generally unnecessary, and not involved in much decision making. At one point he remarks "let me do the announcements, it’s the one thing I get to do on the ship". This relationship explores the growing dependency/reliance on technology in order to run our daily lives. Even more so, it explores the control that this technology can exert over our lives. In the movie, the captain and copilot disagree on whether or not to return to earth. The copilot then takes drastic steps to conceal and subvert the protagonists’ efforts to communicate with the rest of the crew. The main characters fight back against the technology and eventually manage to toggle the ship to "manual control", symbolically and literally ending the dependence on technology. In the readings, Postman discusses a somewhat similar situation in which windmills become a locus for prostitutes in the middle ages, and the local authorities’ attempts to shut it down due to the harm it was causing (Postman p.27). Ultimately, these efforts failed as the economy had become too dependent on the mills to function.
The third relationship explored, between Wall E and Eve, has long term implications for how technology and cybercommunication will develop in the future. This relationship is unique in that it displays how technology ceases to become a medium of communication used by humans, and instead becomes an origin of communication by the technology itself. Messages are generated, sent and received without the participation or knowledge of humans. The implications of this relationship highlight the premise for how technology grows beyond our control. Postman speaks directly to this point when he refers to a “technopoly”, whereby society has become so integrated and reliant on technology to function that the technology itself overrides the traditional societal norms and exerts its own influence.
The portrayals of Wall E bear remarkable similarities to trends that are occurring in society at large. The immediate implications explored in the human to human interaction, whereby endless hours are spent in from of computer screens, experiencing life virtually rather than physically can be seen today. Computer literacy, internet penetration, and internet related activities are increasingly becoming necessary to function, (email, e banking, knowledge, work etc.). The second relationship, between captain and copilot, also bears resemblance to how pilots fly aircraft today. Most of the computation and calculation is left to computers, with the pilots on standby in case something severe occurs. Although we have clearly not reached the level of dependency seen in the film, many critical flight tasks such as landing, takeoff, and navigation are entirely automated via computers. The efficiency, exactitude, and removal of the possibility of human error present several advantages.
In summary, the film presents a multi dimensional approach to how technology and communication intertwine in a possible human future resulting in startling benefits or detriments depending on how the technology is utilized. The underlying message of the film is also clear: technology is here to stay; how we choose to interact and manage it will ultimately determine the future of how we communicate.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Blog Post 1: Abstaining from the internet for 1 day
1) Abstinence: Students must abstain from the internet...ALL internet interaction for one 24 hour period. You cannot use email, check Blackboard, see the sports scores, research, or do anything else on the internet, this includes your phone if you have email access there. If you fall off the wagon, you have to start all over again. WHAT HAPPENS? You should blog about your period of abstinence. How does it affect your ability to communicate? How does it affect how you spend your time? What do you do to replace your time on the internet? These and other questions should be discussed in your blog. Due June 29th.
The internet is an integral part of my life. I use it at work constantly ( I am IT professional) and use computers and other internet related technology (phones, ipod, apple tv) on a daily basis. Unplugging from the internet required preparation and disruption to my normal routines. The only possible days I could abstain from the internet were on the weekend, as internet use is mandatory during weekdays. The date I chose was Sunday the 27th.
What I did on Sunday
Woke up at around 8 am, and I took an extra long shower. I then read a bit of homework for other classes. at 9 I went with my wife and mother in law to dim sum. This lasted until around 11:30. Afterwards I went to the gym for around 1 hour, and then back home to shower and clean up. I prepared some leftovers for lunch, and then set about doing a bunch of errands and chores. I reorganized a few messy shelves, dropped a pair of shoes off for repair, went out to buy ink for my printer, and did some shopping for dinner. My wife and I cooked a fairly lengthy meal, and then we relaxed and watched a movie before bed.
How it affected communication
The abstinence had both a positive and negative effect on my communication. There was increased communication with the people immediately around me (my wife my mother in law etc), while there was decreased communication with my colleagues, friends, and family. This is predictable since I use email, skype, MSN and facebook as primary means of communications with friends and family (I live overseas and phone calls are not practical for long distance).
How it affected my time
I wouldn't say I had an excess of time, but rather a reallocation of where I spent my time. Especially in the morning, I nearly always head to my computer and spend 15 minutes checking various sites, updating myself on the news and so on. It was difficult to abstain from this. The thought crossed my mind to switch on the TV and watch bloomberg or something, but I generally avoid watching TV at all costs (although I do enjoy movies).
What I replaced my (internet) time with
An extra long shower, a leisurely lunch with mother in law and wife, and running a bunch of errands that needed doing.
Postman states that the internet (and past technologies like telephony and writing) have fundamentally altered the way people communicate. This weeks exercise could not have proven this fact more true. It is clear that my life is intrinsically bound to the internet, and without it my life would undergo drastic changes. Indeed, my job and livelihood are tied to the internet, and I would not be able to make a living in the manner I do without it!
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